


The Prisoner's Dilemma

by morporkian_hobbit



Category: Lupin III
Genre: Prisoner's Dilemma, psychology and mind games, this is what happens when you mess up a heist
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 14:14:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30039930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morporkian_hobbit/pseuds/morporkian_hobbit
Summary: "If you and Fujiko don't denounce each other, you're both free to go. If one of you betrays the other, the former is free and the latter goes to jail. If you both betray each other, you'll have reduced sentences.""I'm not going to help you!""I'll give you some time to reconsider."
Relationships: Jigen Daisuke & Mine Fujiko
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	The Prisoner's Dilemma

**Author's Note:**

> I found a random video about the Prisoner's Dilemma, and immediately thought "what if this, but Lupin III?" I have a plan for every combination of the Gang, and I found Jigen and Fujiko to be the most interesting case; and it wouldn't leave my head until I wrote it.
> 
> I am aware that Zenigata is slightly OOC in this, but for the sake of the plot, let's say he's cunning and plays mind games. He's been like that in some instances of canon, so...
> 
> Many thanks to J. and to @loopin on Tumblr for beta-reading this fic, and to Unico for trouble-shooting the plot with me and giving me some documentation on the Prisoner's Dilemma!
> 
> Enjoy!

The Prisoner’s Dilemma

Easy. The answer was easy. He knew her, and she would always play solo when her safety was on the line. He had no reason to put a single shred of trust in her.

So why was this so hard?

* * *

“You’re going to help us.”

The interrogation room was brightly lit, neon tubes spilling painful white light onto the empty walls, the table and the two steel chairs. Somehow, Jigen still managed to look like he was lounging on the world’s most comfortable fainting couch. On the opposite side of the table, Inspector Koichi Zenigata was looking down on him with confident eyes and a cocksure smile.

“Oh yeah? And why would I do that?” Jigen grunted in reply, unimpressed. “You have no proof that Fujiko and I were responsible for that robbery. And I’m not about to hand you my confession on a silver platter. You’ve got nothin’ on me.”

Zenigata leaned back in his chair.

“You’re right. If you both keep your mouths shut, we’ve got nothing on you, and we’ll have to let you walk free.”

The old man was agreeing with him? Not good news.

“However… If Fujiko were to sell you out, she’d walk free, while you’d be stuck here for a long, long time.”

The gunman slouched down in his chair. A sentence starting with “Fujiko” and “selling out” only ever led to one place. His situation had just gone from “annoying but tolerable” to “completely screwed” in seconds.

The inspector’s eyes glinted in the white neon light.

“Of course, it goes both ways,” he added. “And if you were to both denounce each other, you’d get a reduced sentence.”

Jigen stared for a few seconds. The inspector’s confident smile did not waver. In fact, it grew a little wider with every second as understanding dawned on his prisoner.

“You gotta be kidding me.”

“Not at all. After all, we have to repay you for your help.”

“I’m not gonna help you.”

Zenigata got up from his chair and walked towards the door, slapping Jigen on the shoulder as he passed him by.

“I’ll give you some time to reconsider.”

* * *

Fujiko stared at the ceiling as the minutes ticked by in silence. It was grey and dirty, lined with tiny cracks that formed a map to a place that didn’t exist. She let her mind wander along the imaginary roads and concrete continents as she searched for an answer. In vain.

Her number one priority was to get out of this filthy jail as soon as possible. She couldn’t bear to stay here for any amount of time. The solution was obvious, right there in Zenigata’s explanations: keep quiet, and walk out with no charge.

Except… She had to take her partner in crime into account; and so did he. Jigen’s reasoning was glaringly obvious: Fujiko was going to betray him, as she always did, therefore he would protect himself and betray her too.

She couldn’t fault him for that - which didn’t mean she wasn’t angry about it. He wasn’t going to let himself be thrown under the bus to ensure her freedom, that was for certain. He was going to sell her out, just to guarantee that he wouldn’t be left here to rot.

Which meant she had no choice but to prove him right.

* * *

Jigen couldn’t stay quiet on the off chance that Fujiko would too. That was too much of a gamble, and betting on Fujiko Mine was a sure-fire way to lose your stake. The best option – no, the _only_ option, was to sell her out. It was either that, or being stuck in this rat hole for the next decade or so.

His fingers absentmindedly drummed on the cold metal bench of his cell. He was craving a smoke.

Fujiko would be fuming, of course. Thankfully he wouldn’t have to be in the same prison as her. And it would be her just punishment.

Lupin would be angry with him as well. He could already see his offended expression as he scolded the gunman, arms flailing around in a dramatic performance of overreaction. Ratting Fujiko out and dragging her down with him? What had he been thinking? Where was the honour among thieves, the loyalty of their little gang? Well, Fujiko showed neither honour nor loyalty, and Jigen was tired of her getting special treatment.

It wasn’t so much that Fujiko betrayed them at every turn and for any reason. That wasn’t true. Fujiko always had one thing in mind: herself. She played solo, and always did the thing that would lead to the best outcome for her, others be damned. And in this case, betraying Jigen was the safest option for her.

But was it the best?

* * *

_“Are you sure?”_

_Jigen shrugged, and took a drag on the cigarette Zenigata had graciously granted him._

_“ ’course I’m sure. We’re partners. Partners don’t sell each other out.”_

_From under the brim of his hat, he could see the absolutely bewildered look the inspector was giving him. It made Jigen chuckle lightly._

_“This is Fujiko Mine we’re talking about,” Zenigata reminded him. “You seriously trust her?”_

_“Trust her?” The gunman shot him an unimpressed glare. “Of course I don’t trust her.”_

_“Don’t tell me you’re sacrificing yourself for her sake? We both know she’s not going to show you any gratitude.”_

_“I know her.”_

_Silence fell as Jigen slouched down in his chair, completely ignoring the inspector and silently dragging on his cigarette. Zenigata was getting redder by the second; and when it became clear that the gunman wasn’t going to elaborate, the inspector half stood up and slammed his hands on the table._

_“What do you mean, you know her?”_

_Jigen smirked._

_“See, Pops, Fujiko always puts herself first. Her gains, her safety… And right now the thing she wants the most is to get out of this police station as soon as possible. She has two ways to do that: betraying me, or keeping shtum.”_

_“Yeah, I know that,” the inspector grunted. “You don’t need to repeat my own words to me.”_

_“So you see where I’m going with this?”_

_“Absolutely not.”_

_“Fujiko knows that I’ll expect her to betray me, and that I’ll therefore betray her to save my own ass.”_

_“Then why aren’t you doing just that?”_

_“Because,” Jigen snuffed his cigarette butt on the table, “I know that she knows that I’ll react like that. And then we’ll both be stuck in this place for God knows how long. Her only way out is to hope that we both reached the same conclusion, and that we’ll both stay quiet.”_

* * *

_“Are you sure?”_

_“I know what you’re thinking. See, I don’t mind betraying others if I need to. But I don’t do it just for kicks.”_

_“But what if he betrays you?”_

_Fujiko smiled and crossed her arms. Zenigata was staring at her with obvious confusion from across the steel-top table. He certainly hadn’t been expecting this outcome._

_“Betrayal isn’t a hobby, Zenigata. We both want the same thing, and we both know what selling each other out would mean.”_

_“So you trust him? I can’t guarantee that the feeling is mutual.”_

_“I trust that he’s smart and knows me well enough to make a rational decision.”_

_The inspector stayed quiet for a few seconds, then took a deep breath and stood up._

_“Well then. I imagine I’m not going to be able to make you reconsider.”_

_Fujiko shot him her most charming smile._

_“I’m afraid not. Sorry, old man.”_

* * *

_“Are you sure?”_

_“Why wouldn’t I be?”_

_Jigen stared at the inspector from under the brim of his hat. Was he having second thoughts about his offer?_

_“Eh. Of course you are.” The inspector was beaming like a child at Christmas. “You can’t possibly trust Fujiko, and I was counting on that. You two are as predictable as the sunrise.”_

_The gunman smirked and leaned back in his chair._

_“Are we? You’ll have a surprise when you go to receive her testimony, then.”_

_“Huh? What do you mean?”_

_Zenigata’s giddiness wasn’t gone, but he looked confused._

_“She won’t tell you anything. She’s not stupid. She knows that the only way for her to get out is to keep quiet.”_

_Now the inspector’s honest face was genuinely puzzled as he frowned at the gunman._

_“If you think she’s not going to talk, then why are you? Not saying you shouldn’t, but…” his fingers drummed on the table. “I’m surprised.”_

_“Surely you didn’t expect I’d only take into account how much time we’d spend in prison?”_

_“And?”_

_“Fujiko’s betrayed me time and time again. It’s about time she gets a taste of her own medicine.”_

* * *

_“Are you sure?”_

_Fujiko flashed a charming smile at the inspector, who did his best to hide his blush under the brim of his hat._

_“Of course, keibu-dono. I want to help our brave forces of law and order.”_

_Zenigata raised an unconvinced eyebrow at her, and she shrugged._

_“Why wouldn’t I cooperate? You’re offering me easy freedom on a silver platter, in exchange for a simple confession. I’m not an idiot. As much as I’d like to trust Jigen, I can’t bet everything on the off-chance that he trusts me.”_

_Zenigata stared at her for a few seconds, with an intensity she hadn’t expected from him. The scrutiny was suddenly making her uncomfortable._

_“So,” he finally declared, “you’re conforming yourself to the image he has of you.”_

_Fujiko sighed._

_“What choice do I have?”_

_A triumphant grin flashed on Zenigata’s face._

_“None, that’s the whole point. Well, Interpol thanks you for your cooperation, Miss Mine!”_

_And just like that, the bumbling but friendly and frank inspector was back, with no sign of the scarily perceptive man who had been reading Fujiko like an open book just seconds earlier. He stood up and beamed at her before making for the door._

_Fujiko leaned back on her chair and sighed weakly._

_Conforming herself to the image others had of her._

_Story of her life._

* * *

…But Fujiko would definitely see it coming, and then they’d be back at square one. Was that what they were destined for? Mutual betrayal because they knew each other too well?

Jigen stopped pacing around in his cell and dropped heavily onto the bench. So they were both stuck here for the foreseeable future.

Unless…

The gunman shook his head and grunted in frustration. He was going around in circles. Fujiko would reach the same conclusion, and she’d know he did too, they’d both understand that they had better work together, and once they’d both independently reached that conclusion, it left room for either one of them to betray the other for personal reasons.

By the looks of things, he still wouldn’t have made a decision by the time Zenigata came to ask him.

A crashing sound above him made him raise his head. Something – or someone – on the floor above his cell had gotten violently knocked over, and the ceiling was now trembling slightly. He started when a sudden flash of light cut through the room, and an unconscious reflex made him leap to a corner of the cell, just a second before he understood what was happening.

A perfectly circular chunk of the ceiling fell down, supporting the familiar (and oh so relieving) silhouette of Goemon Ishikawa the Thirteenth.

Goemon straightened up and pushed his katana back into its sheath. Behind him, Fujiko was gripping onto his kimono, her face making it very clear that she hated this mode of transportation.

“Are you done stalling yet?” the samurai asked in a flat voice. “Lupin needs you.”

Jigen grinned.

Trust could take many forms.

“Well then, if Lupin needs us… Lead the way.”

**Author's Note:**

> Don't forget to leave a kudo or a comment if you enjoyed the fic!  
> I'd be very interested to hear what you think Fujiko and Jigen would decide! (as well as the others in the Gang)


End file.
